After a few months of public transport, I was very excited to pick up our rental car! It was an automatic, so it’s pretty much like driving a go cart, but was perfect for our east coast mini road trip. We managed to get out of Sydney without too much hassle, just one slightly dodgy u-turn required! We were off to Newcastle for a couple of nights and took the scenic route along the coast, stopping at Tuggerah to check out the lake and for lunch and a walk along the beautiful Blacksmiths Beach.
Newcastle is a really cool city with some fantastic cliffside walks and beautiful colonial architecture. We headed to the cliffs to enjoy the sunset and popped down to check out the Bogey Hole! Sounds rude, but its actually a sea bath that was constructed by convicts in 1820 for the Commandant of Newcastle, and is a really cool little spot for a swim!
I was excited to head back to Nelson Bay, having remembered it as a beautiful spot with a cute lighthouse and fantastic beaches. It didn’t disappoint and after a great lunch looking out at the beautiful water from Nelson Bay lighthouse, we plonked ourselves on the beach and had a dip in the freezing cold water!
The next day we drove along the Lakes Way to head to Forster, my incredible home for 6 months back in 2013. It’s a beautiful drive as you head into the rainforest and then suddenly hit the coast again in Pacific Palms, a surfers Mecca! We couldn’t resist a game of catch and a walk on Boomerang Beach, bringing back memories of my attempts to learn to surf 5 years ago! We continued on to Forster and stayed at a cute Airbnb at Bennett Head. We were keen for a run and headed along the cliffs where I conquered the massive hill that had been my nemesis when I lived in Forster. Graham’s highlight of the evening was definitely running down a scarily steep sand dune onto One Mile beach.
We stayed with Greg(my old boss) and his lovely wife Deb and even took a trip into the place I used to work. It was so great to see old friends and felt like I had never left. I showed Graham the sights of Taree and Forster and I think he probably wondered why I ever left to go back to the UK! It’s a tough life when you wake up and have to decide which beach to go to; One mile, Black head, Red head, Elizabeth, Old Bar, Diamond Head. We changed it up a bit and headed inland to Ellenborough Falls and hiked down to the bottom. Coming back up in near 40deg heat wasn’t the easiest!
The time went far too quickly on our little road trip and soon it was time to head back to Sydney to drop off the car. A visit to Forster will be needed again soon, particularly to spend time with the beautiful Denyelle, who managed to land herself in hospital just before I arrived! We were staying with Graham’s cousin Joanne in Sydney and had such a great few days. We ate some giant burgers, went to the beach, ate frozen custard, had an amazing steak on the barbie (cooked by Jo’s hubbie Richard) and hung out with the coolest kids ever, Grace and Thomas. It was a wonderful farewell to Australia!
Graham and I were nervous about our flight to Wellington. It meant that this part of our adventure was coming to an end and also we didn’t know if anyone would give us a job and a visa when we arrived! Fingers crossed…..
-F xx
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